A Glimpse of Freedom
by EighthHeroine
Summary: All he wants is to know what that kind of freedom feels like... at least once.


From the moment he was born all he had ever done was follow his Father's orders. For a long time he was happy doing whatever his Father told him; he wanted to be just like his Father, the Great Battle Lord Kukku.

That changed when the Babylon Rogues left the Armada. Jet was free to go where he pleased, to fly freely, no one told him what to do, where to go or what to say. All he wants is to know what that kind of freedom feels like... at least once.

* * *

Speedy won't admit it but he had felt a bit hollow after the fox and his friends left Cocoa Island. When the fox and him had fought he had enjoyed himself. Even while piloting the Doctor's robot he had found himself enjoying their fight. The fox "Tails" was truly a worthy opponent.

So he really doesn't mind that the fox and him seem to cross paths more than once. For a creature that shouldn't fly Tails is pretty good at it even if he tends to rely on his wit rather than his flying skills to beat Speedy most of the time. He learns that the fox can fly a plane as well. Speedy has a basic understanding of the flying machines the troops use but he doesn't know much about planes. He's never felt the need to actually use one of the flying machines they have as he can just fly on his own. The only machine he uses from time to time is his battle suit.

He doesn't understand why Tails would need to use a plane. He supposes it's so the fox can fly his friends around. He doesn't get why he'd want to do that though! Tails is able to fly by himself, why would he let his friends control how he flies or share that with them? Using something like a plane to fly seems like a nuisance, it's not real flying after all. Speedy ends up dragging the fox out of the plane on multiple occasions taking down the plane as well as the others aboard it (it seems to alternate between the blue hedgehog, pink hedgehog and the red echidna). He wonders if the fox will ever take the hint and realize how ineffective it is.

"Speedy are you listening?!"

Speedy can't help but jump a little before turning to face Doctor Fu- Doctor Fucoo- Doctor-Unpronounceable-Name.

"You weren't listening were you?! Seriously I get no respect around here! I've been working my tail feathers off and-"

Speedy drowns him out again and looks out one of the side windows of the ship as the sky passes by. Sometimes he wonders what Tails and the Freedom Fighters think of the Armada. Do they think they're real threats or just nuisances? He hopes they think the Armada is a real threat, he'd rather not be a nuisance.

His Father lets out a round of coughs and Speedy's attention is pulled back to their meeting.

"Father are you feeling alright?"

Speedy ignores the glare Doctor-Unpronounceable-Name sends him for interrupting him.

"I'll admit I haven't been feeling all that well since this morning."

Speedy vaguely remembers some of the troops discussing a virus going around. Sounded like it was a pretty bad one.

"Do you think you'll be well enough to command during the attack tomorrow?"

Supposedly the Freedom Fighters and the echidna who guards the Master Emerald are gathering for some kind of ceremony tomorrow. For some reason his Father wants the Master Emerald (Speedy's been meaning to ask why). This meeting was originally supposed to be about the plan tomorrow though as usual the Doctor had gotten carried away talking about his new machine.

He hopes his Father calls off the attack; he's not sure if he could beat them on his own without his Father's help. That hope vanishes when his Father turns to him and smiles.

"Well it be a shame not to attack tomorrow. The echidna and his friends will be so busy with their little ceremony they won't be ready for an attack. That's why this is a perfect opportunity for you to lead my son! You've really improved in your training recently and I'm sure you can easily dispose of that fox once and for all."

Speedy stiffens at the mention of Tails.

"Tails isn't the one with the Master Emerald Dad. The echidna is the person we're after. Wouldn't it be better to change the attack to a day where they aren't all with the echidna?"

His Father's smile only falters for a second.

"We wouldn't be able to take the Freedom Fighters down with him then would we? Or that blasted fox? We might as well knockout two birds with one stone don't you think."

Speedy knows it's futile to argue. His father won't listen to him anyway.

"Doctor Fukurokov you will follow my son's command tomorrow along with the rest of the Armada. I'm going to my room to catch up on some sleep. You can discuss the rest of the plan without me."

His Father stands to leave and Speedy waits to hear the words he always loathes hearing.

"Do not let me down Speedy."

* * *

Everything goes surprisingly well until it starts raining. None of the troops are as efficient in the rain and the Freedom Fighters quickly gain the upper hand. Even with the troops and Doctor-Unpronounceable-Name's new robot as a distraction the echidna manages to run off with the emerald. Speedy had attempted to pursue him until the pink hedgehog threw a hammer at him that practically knocks him out of the air. By now he's so frustrated with his luck that he desperately tries to find something to take out his anger on, something, anything! He spots Tails in his plane shooting at multiple of his troops. Perfect! His Father won't be as upset with him if he takes down the fox.

It's incredibly easy pulling the fox out of the plane, taking down the blue hedgehog riding on the wing with it as the plane stumbles downward without a pilot. He can hardly see anything in the pouring rain but he's angry and frustrated and lashes out at the fox the best he can.

Tails is hardly putting up a fight instead he continuously dodges and attempts to get away.

"Hold still you little freak!"

He throws punch after punch, kick after kick, until finally they connect. Water stings his eyes and his feathers are soaking wet, he's tired and his throat is starting to hurt but it doesn't matter. If he can just please his Father-

Speedy's so distracted he doesn't hear the plane propellers approaching and he realizes far too late that the plane from earlier is heading right at him. He's struck on the back of his head by the side of the plane's wing. All he can feel is pain and he can't seem to tell up from down. Somewhere in his mind he's aware he's falling but he can't seem to do anything about it. He vaguely sees the blue hedgehog piloting the plane abandon it as one of his troops fires a missile that brings the plane down. And he vaguely hears someone yell his name through the ringing in his ears. For a minute the only other sound he can hear is the rain and the wind and the rest of the world disappears.

When he comes to the pain from hitting the ground doesn't come as expected. Instead all he can feel is the pain from where the plane hit him. Slowly his senses return to him and he realizes someone is talking to him.

"Speedy! Speedy you okay?"

It dawns on him that Tails is the one talking to him and there both on the ground, the fox supporting him. The fog in front of his eyes lifts and he can make out the fox's face and the concern shining in his eyes. Did- did Tails stop his fall?

He pushes away from the fox as hard as he can and wobbly stands up, taking a couple steps back.

"Why!? Why did you-"

He wants to ask why he would save him, he wants to ask why the hedgehog was flying his plane, he wants to ask how long he was knocked out, so many unanswered questions run through his mind he desperately tries to pick which question he actually wants to voice.

"Why do you even fly that stupid thing?!"

The fox looks completely taken aback at the outburst. Of course he's confused! Tails probably has no idea what he's even talking about! Speedy bites his tongue and does his best to compose himself turning to observe the smoke that rises from the plane crash in the distance. The silence makes him shiver. The only thing that breaks it is the rain as if it's taunting him. He's about to tell the fox to forget about it when he finally responds.

"I've worked on the Tornado for almost my whole life. It's kind of like a part of me now I guess. And when I fly it my friends can fly with me."

For someone so smart Tails sure is stupid! Does he not see that he's giving up a part of his freedom to pilot the thing? Only he can fly why share that with others?

"You can fly on your own! Why would you want to give that up to fly a machine?!"

Tails looks confused.

"They're my friends Speedy. Why wouldn't I want to fly with them? Flying on my own is great but it's lonely when you don't have anyone to fly with."

Speedy feels his chest tighten. He remembers the day he first learned how to fly. His Father had proclaimed he was a natural and Speedy had gotten so carried away due to his Fathers praise he ran right into a tree. His Father couldn't help but chuckle at his expense before reassuring him that he would teach him how to turn on a dime. He had spent the rest of the day flying with his Father. What he had felt that day had been one of the best feelings he had ever experienced. Maybe that's why he enjoys himself so much whenever he fights with Tails in the air. He's not flying alone.

For a second Speedy forgets why they were fighting in the first place. His Father isn't here to yell at him for failing. No one's ordering him on what to do or how to act. Even the rain has quieted down. He takes a breath and wills himself to relax.

"Well sorry about that." He motions to the smoke. "Must be annoying to have to fix it everytime we meet."

Tails studies him for a second until a smile stretches across his face.

"It's okay. I like working on the Tornado plus it gives me an excuse to upgrade it." Tails steps a bit closer relaxing as well. "So you better watch out next time! After I fix her up it won't be so easy to pull me out of it!"

Speedy can't help but smile.

"Yeah well the next time we meet our troops will be much stronger! After what happened today I'm sure my Father will really intensify their training! You won't stand a chance!"

The Armada troops are already retreating and he's aware Tails' friends are probably looking for the fox but he doesn't really care. For once he wouldn't mind sharing the sky with someone else. It's a feeling that he won't forget anytime soon. It feels like freedom.

Tails' smile somehow brightens.

"You should probably get going Speedy. I think your troops are wondering if your okay."

The fox turns to leave a smile still on his face that Speedy tries to commit to memory. Speedy eventually turns away as well. He's about fly back to the main ship when Tails' voice stops him.

"Don't let your Dad control you forever Speedy. You deserve better than that."

He smiles up at the sky. The clouds have cleared and the sky is as beautiful and welcoming as the first day Speedy remembers flying.

"I won't."

* * *

Author's Notes:

I hope the part where Sonic's piloting the Tornado isn't confusing! When Tails got pulled out of it he managed to get to the pilot's seat before it crashed. And he didn't mean to actually hurt Speedy that bad or anything I think he just kinda freaked when he saw how aggressive Speedy was toward Tails and did the only thing he could think of. This is meant to take place in the Archie comics canon btw

I never write anything but I was hit with inspiration for this fic I guess. I have a bad feeling everyone's really ooc in this fic so I apologize if they are. I'm looking forward to the new Sonic comics but there were a lot of things I'll miss that were in the Archie comics


End file.
